Two decades of junk cleared from lagoon

Over 20 years of garbage thrown into Manly Lagoon has slowly been uncovered and pulled from the sludge as dredging of the waterway nears completion.

Contractors removed bin-loads of bulky waste from the lagoon during early stages of remedial work at the site before beginning the lengthy processing of finer material still clogging the waterway.

Work on the $1.2 million project began around three months ago and is expected around 6400 cubic metres of sediment will be removed by the time the dredging is finished.

Locals hope it will help restore the lagoon to its former glory, with residents describing it as now being a “mud pond” at low tide after years of waste build-up.

Mark Roberts, who heads the citizens’ lagoon committee, said it was appalling that the waterway had apparently been used as a dump by locals for a number of years.

Daniel Fritsch, of Sandpiper Dredging, described the on-site dredge as acting like a huge “vacuum cleaner” that sucked sediment from the bottom of the lagoon before the fine waste was processed using special bags.

Local councils will reuse sediment extracted from the lagoon after it had been dried, with Manly Council expecting to utilise up to 50 per cent of the waste on its grounds and playing fields.